Stewart Island promoted at English bird fair

A Stewart Island tourism operator was among ornithologists worldwide who flocked to England to take part in the world's largest bird fair at the weekend.

Ruggedy Range Wilderness Experience owner operator Furhana Ahmad has been on a waiting list to get into the British Birdwatching Fair for two years, and was thrilled at the chance to be involved.

"It means directly meeting our clients face-to-face and showing them first hand what we offer, and about the wonderful opportunities to bird-watch in New Zealand," she said.

This would encourage more visitors to visit Stewart Island and Ulva Island, where many of the company's tours were based.

"And when they do that, they're going to visit the rest of the country as well," Ms Ahmad said.

Ruggedy Range was one in a small group of New Zealand tourism operators who attended the fair.

It was the only operator from Southland.

The fair was a mix of tourist operators, film crews, artists and people who sell birdwatching equipment from around the globe, and ran from Friday to Sunday. Last year the fair attracted 19,000 people, and this year's visitor numbers were expected to exceed that, which Ms Ahmad said opened her business up to a huge market.

Speaking to the Southland Times yesterday, she said the fair was "absolutely amazing" and had far surpassed her expectations, and she had seen a great deal of interest in visiting New Zealand, and in particular, Stewart Island.

"We've had people come up to us who have been to New Zealand and have realised what a wonderful place they have missed out on by not coming to Stewart Island," Ms Ahmad said.

Not all interest had come from bird-lovers. Interest had also come from people interested in nature experiences, she said.

She was surprised at the amount of interest in people moving to New Zealand, and had been advising people on where to look for information about moving, she said.

- © Fairfax NZ News